Watercolor Painting Demonstration by Barbara Fox - " Dreamy Pinks"

Dreamy Pinks

watercolor  9 x 10"

Dreamy Pinks Painting Demonstration

Paints used for this painting: Winsor Newton and M. Graham, Holbein where noted.

Cadmium Lemon
New Gamboge
Sap Green
Hookers Green
Peacock Blue (Holbein)
Cobalt Blue
Prussian Blue
Dioxazine Purple
Permanent Rose
Opera (Holbein)
Quinacridone Red
Quinacridone Violet
Alizarin Crimson

Paper I use is Jack Richeson 300 lb cold press watercolor paper.


Here is the photograph I used for reference.

Oops, can't find it. I'll search, then put it in later.


Step 1 - pencil drawing on the paper.
For a complicated drawing like this, I usually do a tracing of my little photograph, then using my copy machine, I enlarge the image and copy this onto my watercolor paper. I hang the drawing on a big. sunny window, tape the wc paper over the drawing, then trace the image.

Step 2 -the color field
I paint in layers, so step one is painting the first layer. I call this my “base layer”, because I am painting the
color of the subject, albeit with some variety. This is done in sections, painting every other petal, for the rose. Let each section dry completely before painting the section next to it., otherwise the colors will run.

I let the colors blend with a wet-on-wet technique, either:
A. wetting an area with water, then touching the colors on it,

or

B. laying in a colored wash, then adding the second and sometimes third color.
 

I used both techniques in this painting. They give the same results.

Remember, the pigments flow with the water, so let the water do the work!

 

Slowly but surely, the roses are taking shape. I painted the petals using Hookers Green and Pthalo Blue, with Sap Green on the stem.

Don’t be afraid to use rich and/or dark colors in this first step.

When the rose is completely painted with the first layer, and dry, I paint the background, in this case a spotty color field, again painted wet-on-wet. I used Cadmium Lemon, Hookers Green, Peacock Blue, Prussian Blue, Permanent Rose, Opera, and Dioxazine Violet.

To get this washy effect, wet the entire background area, then drop the colors next to each other . Tilt the paper to let the colors mix, but don’t do too much brushwork.


Step 3 - Shadows
Once the first layer of color is laid down, I proceed to paint the shadows. Usually the shadows on a flower are the same colors I’ve been using, only darker, and sometimes with a bit of purple (to grey the color) or cobalt blue (to cool the color). These roses are a cool pink, however, the underside of the petals and the interior is very warm- yellows, corals, and oranges. So, for these flowers, I used Dioxazine Violet and Quinacridone Violet to paint the shadows on the outside of the petals, and Alizarin Crimson and Quinacridone Red for the interior of the blossom.
 

Just as I painted STEP 1, I paint the shadows wet-on-wet, letting the pigments mix on the page.

Step 4- deeper colors
 

Background: I painted another layer of the background, making it very dark, but with beautiful, rich colors.
I added drops of water onto the wet pigment here and there. The water pushes the pigment back and creates this out-of-focus mottled effect.
This technique makes very different effects depending on how wet the paper is, so practice it a bit. Also, the pigments react differently, depending on their staining* quality.
*Many watercolor paints are divided into Staining or Granular colors. It is a whole other “science“ of watercolor painting that I don‘t get too involved in. There is probably more information on the Internet, if you’re interested.
When the background was dry, I went over it again with a rich mixture of Peacock Blue. This unifies all the colors and visually pushes back the bright pinks and yellows. We don’t want those competing for attention with the flowers.
Peacock Blue is one of those great colors that seems to layer beautifully over most other colors.

Step 5 -details, details

I use another layer of paint (the same colors) to enhance the colors in the darkest areas, still painting wet-on-wet.
I very lightly paint the veins on some of the petals.
Finally I add a small touch of Dioxazine Violet in the very darkest areas.
Voila! A lush and luminous pair of roses!

PERFECTLY PINK watercolor painting demonstration by Barbara Fox

Perfectly Pink

watercolor  6 x 7"

Here is the photo I used for reference; taken many years ago with my SLR camera.

Step 1) Pencil Drawing

 I did a quick, pencil drawing of the rose on watercolor paper.

 Step 2) Color Field

Each petal of the rose is painted separately using Permanent Rose, Opera, Winsor Violet, and Cobalt Blue. Remember to paint every other petal, so the paint washes won’t run into each other.

 

I paint the petals in one of two ways:

A. I wet the area of the petal with plain water, then add pure colors, letting the water do the mixing.

see below

OR

B. I painted the petal with Permanent Rose, then immediately added a little Cobalt Blue along the top edge while the paint was still wet.

see below

I painted the background using technique A., getting the paper very wet, adding the color, then tipping the paper to let the colors flow together. I don't try to paint the whole background at once. Here you can see that I painted the background in 2 sittings. This is the big advantage to doing a splotchy, washy background.

The leaves are painted with Sap Green, Viridian, Peacock Blue, and Alizarin Crimson. Plus, I mixed Alizarin Crimson and Viridian to get a black.

3) Shadows and Texture

The cast shadows are added to the flower petals, using Winsor Violet with a bit of Opera here and there.

Remember to paint every area separately, so the colors don’t bleed.

 

Cast Shadows on the leaves are Black, Viridian, and Prussian Blue

Suddenly the rose has dimension! I also added some detail texture to some of the petals, but that is done after the shadows are completely dry.

 

see below

 

 

Step 4) More Layers/ Richer Colors

I added another layer of pink color over the rose, using Opera and Permanent Rose. Again, painting each petal separately.

 

 

The last layer of pink wash was not painted in a flat manner. I tried to follow the gradations of light and dark I saw on the photograph. I also didn’t paint the edge of the petal with the second layer. This gives the flower more shape and dimension.

I added a very dark wash to the background using Viridian, Peacock Blue, Winsor Violet, and Prussian Blue, with a few dabs of Opera, and some black (Alizarin Crimson and Viridian) lines added to the wet wash to give the impression of foliage.

I washed water over each leaf. This “melted” a bit of the heavy pigment and diminished the contrast a little. Too much contrast draws attention, and I don’t want the leaves to be the center of interest in this painting.

The pinks and cool blues and greens balance each other very well in this painting. The painting as a whole is quite dark, but the vibrant pink color, and the value contrast of the rose make it the center of attention.

There are 3 simple ways to make something stand out in a painting:
Value contrast - Shadows!

Lines around the subject -you get this very subtle effect when each area is painted seperately.

Complementary colors - The pink flower against the greenish background.

If something is inclear in this demonstration, please let me know by leaving a comment or sending an email.
Happy Painting!
mailto:bfoxart@yahoo.com